Dust and Light

On the Art of Fact in Fiction

Andrea Barrett

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Hardback

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English

WW Norton & Co
08 April 2025

Creative writing & creative writing guides; Writing & editing guides; Literary essays; Literature: history & criticism

Hailed as a ""genius-enchantress"" (Karen Russell) and winner of the MacArthur Fellowship, the celebrated novelist Andrea Barrett has for decades reached backward to find inspiration from the past and written acclaimed and prizewinning works of historical fiction. In Dust and Light, the first work of nonfiction of her extraordinary career, Barrett draws from that deep well of experience to explore the mysteries, methods, and delights of the form.

Inspiration found in the past, she argues, can illuminate fiction, just as dust scatters light and makes the unseen visible. Barrett writes of lessons gleaned from the classic work of some of her guiding lights (Willa Cather, Henry James, Leo Tolstoy, Virginia Woolf), as well as the work of such contemporary masters as Hilary Mantel, Toni Morrison, Colm Tóibín, and Jesmyn Ward. She reveals how she created some of her own beloved works, taking readers on a fascinating journey into some of the largest questions in the genre: How does a writer find meaningful subject matter beyond the confines of their life? How are scraps of history found, used, misused, manipulated, and transformed into a fully formed narrative? And what are the perils as well as the potential of this process?

Building on pieces originally published in leading literary magazines and featured in The Best American Essays, Dust and Light is an elegant exploration of the hazy borderlands of fiction sewn from the materials of history. Filled with profound insights, it will be a delight for any devoted fiction readers, and of great use to aspiring writers too.

By: Andrea Barrett
Imprint: WW Norton & Co
Country of Publication: United States [Currently unable to ship to USA: see Shipping Info]
Dimensions: Height: 193mm, Width: 122mm, Spine: 23mm
Weight: 243g
ISBN: 9781324036500
ISBN 10: 1324036508
Pages: 208
Publication Date: 08 April 2025
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Andrea Barrett is the author of the National Book Award–winning Ship Fever and the Pulitzer Prize finalist Servants of the Map, among other works of fiction. The recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship and a Guggenheim Award, she lives in the Adirondacks.

Reviews for Dust and Light: On the Art of Fact in Fiction

[A]n ode to fiction's unique ability to illuminate history--not as fact but as felt experience.-- ""New Yorker"" [An] edifying meditation ... Barrett's reflections on her process provide glimpses of a master at work, and she supports her observations with sharp analysis of how other authors tackle historical fiction ... a bracing inquiry into the purpose of fiction and its relationship with truth.--Publishers Weekly (starred review) Andrea Barrett has won all the prizes for her fiction, and deservedly so. ... This slim book, the first nonfiction of her career, bursts with ideas and images. An invaluable guide and a pure delight.--Kate Tuttle ""Boston Globe"" In her first book of essays, which are as keen and beautifully crafted as her stories, [Barrett] parses the challenges involved in writing literary historical fiction ... With candid accounts of false starts and revision marathons, Barrett's felicitous chronicle will intrigue and enlighten passionate readers and writers.--Donna Seaman ""Booklist"" Barrett's bouquet of essays reflects on her craft as a writer of historical fiction. ... This is a highly personal book, rich with lived anecdotes ... Evocative essays on the challenges of writing and reading historical fiction, memoir, and literary biography.-- ""Kirkus Reviews"" Seeking to better understand the process by which fiction can buttress the gaps left by historical fact, Barrett has written the new go-to guide for lovers and writers both of stories anchored in the past.--Jonny Diamond ""Literary Hub""